Curious to see if anyone has heard of the new Azenis compound actually being produced for the US. I just bought a set of dedicated autocross/track rims and need to put something on it. Though I can wait a while if they're actually going to bring them by the end of this year or early next year. Otherwise I'll just shed them in a set of Azenis or ES100's. It's going on 16" rims so the Kuhmo MX are out.

 

why are the MX out if you have 16" rims? my 225/50/16 don't seem to be allergic to pavement or anything... or is that just not the right tire, gearing wise?

 

Well since they are my sponsor I had to ask them. The Azenis V.1 has been around for 5-7 years they say in Asia. The Azenis V.2 is supposed to be the same compound BUT a different tread design which is supposed to be better.

I was hoping for a newer compound.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by CivicSiRacer &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Well since they are my sponsor I had to ask them. The Azenis V.1 has been around for 5-7 years they say in Asia. The Azenis V.2 is supposed to be the same compound BUT a different tread design which is supposed to be better.

I was hoping for a newer compound.</TD></TR></TABLE>
Really? I had heard just the opposite, that they would keep the same tread pattern but soften the compound slightly.

You're probably the closest person here to Falken, keep us posted.

 

Yeah, it's more of a gearing thing. Stock is 205/50/16 and the 225/50/16 just gets larger and I'd like to try and reduce the size if I change it around. Maybe I should consider the MX's. Though considering that 2nd gear already is around 65 mph I'd probably want to reduce that.

 

i didnt think the tire width changed the gearing all that much. i was under the impression that the sidewall height (profile) was the most significant.. both that you list are 50..

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by illusion &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">i didnt think the tire width changed the gearing all that much. i was under the impression that the sidewall height (profile) was the most significant.. both that you list are 50..</TD></TR></TABLE>
Sidewall height is proportionate to the width.
A 225/50 has a higher sidewall and larger overal circumference than 205/50

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/...e.htm

The second number is the aspect ratio. This is a ratio of sidewall height to width. In the example above, the tire is 7.28" wide, multiply that by the aspect ratio to find the height of one sidewall. In this case, 185x0.60=111mm or 7.28"x0.60=4.36".

 

Do you think there will ever be a 205/55/15 Azenis of any flavor in the US? I've heard they are available overseas...

 

well there ya have it! thanks elgorey

 

Well, when I was at the Mazda Rev it Up thing, the Falken rep said that they will be offering more sizes to the US in V2. Hopefully, that will mean that any sizes available elsewhere will be here, eventually.

Though I'm one of the lucky ones with no rubbing on my 15's anyway.

 

Back to the main topic, anyone have the lowdown on the US release date?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by TimeRacer &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Back to the main topic, anyone have the lowdown on the US release date?</TD></TR></TABLE>

What's it matter? The Azenis are the best *street* tire out for autox anyways (IMO). There is nothing wrong with the version that is out now that a little water won't take care of.

And if you aren't running in a ST class, chances are any street tire won't be better than what your competitiors will have. And if you're in it for fun, then any tire will work just fine.

IMO, buy the azenis now and don't sweat it if something else gets released either tomorrow or in a few years.

 

I must be missing something. Since you said:

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by TimeRacer &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I just bought a set of dedicated autocross/track rims and need to put something on it.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Then why don't you put some real track tires (R compound) on the rims? They'll do much better on the track than the Azenis Sport, which is a street tire. There are lots of choices of R compound tire - Hoosier R3S03 for ultimate grip on a track, Hoosier A3S03 for ultimate grip at autocross, Yokohama A032R (hard compound for the track, soft compound for autocross) for longer life and better wet traction, Toyo RA-1 for a nice mix of great track performance and treadlife, etc.

 

nsxtasy could have also included the michelin pilot sport cups, p-zero corsa, kumho ecsta v700, kumho victoracers, etc.

 

Sure, I could have, if I wanted to provide a more complete list. I also could have mentioned the new Hankook track tires that did so well in the test in last month's issue of Grassroots Motorsports.

 

Just sticking to the STX rules myself....

 

Rep said Spring or Summer 2004.

 

Hehe. I' m just mouthing off. Although, the MPSC's and p-zero corsas are a misnomer for honda apps. as 17" applications are the smallest, for both tire, if I remember correctly. Nonetheless, I'd love to give the p-zero corsas a try, or the MSC's, too.